Though still a bit frazzled having arrived just over a week ago, I’m back in California for an extended visit (sissy getting married!) and finding myself assuredly falling back into old habits. The commute to work first veers towards grabbing a convenient cup of coffee for the drive; gym clothes, work shoes, and all other essentials now reside in my (borrowed) car; and I thoroughly enjoy being able to order things such as soy lattes or buckwheat organic spinach crepes at the farmers’ market.

Memorial Day weekend brought about a mini reunion – old friends, new friends, crisscrossing circles, kiddies, babies, and adults alike. Best of all, Sandra and Lolo made the drive up to Norcal to partake in the weekend festivities.

We first drew ambitious plans of cooking up a storm at a friend’s backyard BBQ. However, as the weekend and time quickly passed us by, Sandra and I settled to raid the Campbell Farmers’ Market for the freshest of veggies and the sweetest of fruits in order to toss together a few simple but tasty salads for our party contribution.

Cherries in season at the Campbell’s Farmers Market

I defaulted to creating a super-sized version of kohlrabi slaw, but substituted sesame seed oil and a touch of olive oil for the fish sauce to accommodate the vegans, and added just a splash of rice wine vinegar (3:1 ratio of oil to vinegar). Of course, some extra found goodies were also added: chopped green onion, cilantro, rainbow carrots, cucumber, and pickled ginger/beets (found at a kraut stand that additionally offered kimchi and pickled jalapenos). The ginger/beets painted my originally color diversified salad with a uniform shade of magenta, but nonetheless added great crunch with just a hint of “sauer.”

Kohlrabi slaw bathed in magenta.

Sandra and Lolo endeavored together on a beautiful chopped veggie salad and an additional fruit salad. The chopped salad, lightly tossed in a lemon and olive oil, with a pinch of salt and pepper included a variety of mixed greens, cherry heirloom tomatoes, oven roasted baby beets, half a pound worth of shaved parmesan, and a Sandra-requirement… two jumbo Haas avocados. We desperately searched the market for perfectly ripened avocados, and next a Trader Joe’s, but finally sped into trusty Whole Foods as the last resort. Not the first time a Whole Foods has saved the day!

Yes, we know – it’s been a while since Sandra and I have made a squeak in the blog-o-sphere. But hopefully the days of being MIA are behind us as the fantastic weekend together brought about a few new ideas and delicious inspirations… stay tuned!

The weekend here in Mallorca was absolutely glorious. We’ve been settling into warmer temperatures (t-shirt weather), breathing in the luscious scent of almond blossoms, and greedily enjoying blue skies and sunshine sans tourists.

In preparation for her 13 km walk for charity at school, KJ and I took our cameras and went for a leisurely 10 km walk just out of the village, down the mountain, through a few rolling hills, and towards the next town over. It’s probably one of the prettiest trails (in my books) on this island. If it weren’t for the winding asphalt road just alongside the rustic stone lined path and the occasional zippy car, I’d think that I had stumbled straight into a romance-chick-flick, the kind set in the idyllic foreign countryside where the unknowing American gets swept off her feet by some suave guy (yeah, hubby is my suave guy, though these other elements in my story are a bit convoluted).

Passing almond orchard and huge finca along the walk.

Almond trees blossoming.

KJ decides to scale a tree in search of almonds.

After the day hike on Saturday, I woke up famished the next morning and craving pancakes (and fuel for Crossfit WOD 12.3 later… ouch). I reverted back to a recipe that I had tried a few weekends ago for a grain-free yet wonderfully fluffy pancake. That day, the pancakes came out perfect. Today – not so much. They looked, actually, rather terrible and burnt as the stove simply didn’t want to cooperate with me. Fortunately, the disfigured cakes still tasted good – KJ thought even better than the last time – and its ill-fated looks were easily masked by a colorful fresh fruit salad.

KJ suggested that we have breakfast outside. Sunlight was kind to the food and turned out to be rather good for the soul, as we ended up basking in the outdoor warmth, working on art projects and sneaking the occasional snack, until late afternoon.

Combine and mix together dry ingredients – flour, baking soda, salt, flax, and chia seeds. In a separate bowl, beat eggs until smooth, mix in mashed bananas, vanilla, agave, and yogurt. Slowly mix wet ingredients into the dry. I diverged from Nourishing Days recipe by using frothed milk rather than regular milk – with the thinking that some extra air added into the pancake mix would enhance the fluffiness. My Nespresso milk frother, probably one of my all time favorite kitchen gadgets, came in super handy. Once the milk is frothed, gently fold into the mix. If the mixture is too liquid-y (very much dependent on the type of coconut flour used and how finely it is ground), slowly add more coconut flour until the batter thickens. I added about an extra 1/4 cup.

Heat a bit of oil in a non-stick pan over medium-low temperature. Once the pan is hot, ladle a couple of tablespoons of batter into pan. Spread out slightly, if necessary, until the pancake is ~2-3 inches in diameter. Cook for a few minutes, until the edges begin to dry out and the bottoms start to brown. Flip and cook an additional 2-3 minutes.

Top with fruit, yogurt, preserves, honey, whatever the taste buds might crave and enjoy with a side of sunshine!

Since the arrival of our new more-functions-than-I-can-imagine food processor, hubby has been churning out gluten free, Paleo approved muffins like a madman. Yes, he fancies the new heavy machinery. He also fancies the muffins. And the muffins hubby bakes are GOOD. He experiments with ingredient combinations – coconut flour, almond flour, nuts, berries, bananas, apricots, cranberries, strawberries, and even an avocado thrown in; always moist, delicious, the perfect breakfast or afternoon treat alongside a cafe con leche.

It’s been wonderful to be spoiled by someone else baking. However, it’s also meant that I need to step up my game.

Roost’s beautiful “Cranberry & Almond Upside Down Cakes” seemed like the perfect contest entry into our unspoken “bake-off”. I could glean some dried cranberries (in place of the fresh ones the recipe calls for) from my husband’s stash, gather a lemon off the tree, and zest an orange off another (our orange tree yields beautiful smelling yet awful tasting fruit). As another deviation from the original, I added clementine slices to the fruit topping for an additional zing of flavor and also to replace moisture lost with the dried cranberry substitution.

Combine and whisk the dry ingredients for the muffin (flour, salt, baking soda, and spices). In a separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients (eggs, almond butter, and honey). Next, combine wet and dry ingredients, set aside.

Combine and toss all ingredients (except for the clementine wedges) for the fruit topping. Lightly grease muffin tins; place one clementine wedge in the center of each tin. Next, spoon a bit of the cranberry mixture into each tin, dividing the mixture equally. Top each tin with muffin batter, smoothing out the mixture and covering evenly. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the tops are a golden brown.

The name is certainly a mouth full. The urge to bake was upon me and muffins have been calling my name these last few weeks. What is better than a moist berry-filled muffin to accompany our fruit and yogurt breakfast or perhaps have as an afternoon pick me up?

I am not a fan of overly sweet baked goods. I always cut way back on the sugar – this recipe is no exception. For these muffins, I loaded them up with not only lots of fresh blueberries, but blackberries too. In addition to the fruit, I added some poppy seeds for texture and a hint of almond for flavoring. Each bite of these little guys are definitely packed full of goodness.

Since I only had half and half instead of milk in the fridge, I decided a little extra richness was NOT going to hurt the recipe one bit – these muffins did not leave me feeling heavy or weighed down like many other muffins.

Sift together flour and cornstarch 4-5 several times to ensure they are both well incorporated. Measure out 2 tablespoons of flour mixture and set aside.

In a large mixing bowl, sift together all dry ingredients. Then add half and half, water, ½ cup sugar, butter, eggs, poppy seeds, and almond extract. Mix together all ingredients just until moistened – lumps in mixture are fine.

In a small bowl combine berries, 2 tablespoons sugar, and 2 tablespoons flour mixture. Mix together until well coated.

As I shop for my weekly list of superfoods for breakfast, I am well received by warm and friendly smiles and greetings. Many have grown accustomed to seeing me, like my strawberry purveyor – in turn, I reciprocate with a warm hello and ask how he is doing.

After we briefly chat, I ask “Can I get a basket of your sweetest and ripest strawberries?” I like to think he gives me the best basket he’s got. And as an added bonus – he always gives me a handful of extra berries, which always keeps me coming back.

Each and every weekday, Lolo and I begin our mornings with a light and healthy breakfast – it doesn’t leave us feeling heavy and weighed down. It’s the perfect way to start the day. I’m a big proponent of eating well to live better. I suppose Lolo and I are one of the few lucky people who genuinely enjoy eating healthy.

Living in the Los Angeles area, there is always have an abundance of fresh fruits available. Fortunately, I am able to buy our staples on a year-round basis, and toss in seasonal fruit to keep things interesting.

The medley of fruits I usually include: blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, and strawberries.

At the moment, the Golden kiwi (yellow fleshed) has recently made its debut. It’s a seasonal fruit, and its end is drawing near.

The flesh is wonderfully sweet, mild and a golden yellow – less tart than the green variety. I think it tastes more tropical. Sadly, I picked up the last few left at the supermarket yesterday. If not, the green kiwi is always available.

Wash all fruits. I usually wash the kiwi too, even though skin is peeled. Cut kiwi and strawberries the same size as other berries, slice blackberries in half or into thirds depending on size of fruit. Chop walnuts.